★★★★1/2
Do you have it in you to make it epic?
George Miller does, for sure. Furiosa is epic in every sense of the word! Almost a decade after the success of Fury Road, George Miller has grabbed all the Mad Max hype and expectations by the throat and squeezed: Furiosa is incredible. Epic in every sense of the word. It's hard to overstate how immaculately crafted this film is, both as a prequel to Max Max: Fury Road and as a stand-alone story of how the Wasteland created a powerful character. Furiosa is not Fury Road and that’s ok. It’s not trying to be. What it is is something uniquely gnarly and yes, epic. If Miller was channeling Metropolis meets Stagecoach for Fury Road, here he's made a Biblical, almost Dickensian epic. More intimate, ruminative, and recklessly ambitious, he traces how Edenic innocence turns to rage and life drifts to myth. I loved it. Fury Road and Furiosa have the feel of a perfect double album, the more straightforward and accomplished first disc followed by a messier, more experimental, and vulnerable second, foiling and enriching their twin in the process.
The beauty of Miller's vision is overwhelming. People are going to complain about the poppy, more clearly "digital" look of Furiosa compared to the (still very "digital") perceived grit of Fury Road. I haven't seen enough people rave about how Miller confidently changed the visual style of Fury Road for Furiosa: instead of a constant montage of hyper-kinetic quick cuts, there are gorgeously staged mini-oners, balletically snaking through the action. It's incredible. Miller's camera is more patient and decisive, allowing the action to play out at greater distances (we watch an entire raid from the top of a sand dune) and with a much longer average shot length, elegantly stitching multiple phases of action together mid-shot. Maybe my favorite shot in Furiosa is when a paraglider flies to the sky, and in one take, the camera rises with it. I'd call it Spielbergian, but Miller does his own thing. Furiosa is a beautifully shot film and plays into the heightened, mythical nature of what Miller is doing thematically.
The madcap spectacle and design of this world puts Furiosa far ahead of most action films. The setpieces are among some of the best action you will ever see put to film. I highlighted the visuals, but the sound design was also incredible. I can’t say I loved the score though, it felt like it just blended into the background most of the time, and never really elevated any scenes. It was a generic action movie backtrack. But that’s okay - the movie soared without it. It is still completely immersive, captivating, and rich storytelling.
There wasn’t a second of this sprawling and epic saga that I wasn’t invested in its world, characters, action, all of it. Keep in mind, this is a very different movie than Fury Road, focusing less on being an action extravaganza and more on building out the wasteland and its crazy characters. You get the big action, and like I said, it’s amazing, but there’s a lot of time dedicated here to allow you to breathe in this demented world and understand it a little bit better. It does what every great prequel should do; crafting its own compelling narrative while making the original film even more rewarding to return to. I loved following Furiosa on her long and blood-soaked journey of vengeance and never knowing where the narrative would turn next. Anya Taylor-Joy and Alyla Browne are both fantastic as Furiosa and each portrays her in different but effective ways. In a mostly silent role, they each tap into what Charlize Theron did with the character and make it their own. Chris Hemsworth steals the film with this despicable, hilarious, and complex villain, Dementus. I loved every second he was on screen and it may be his best performance to date – he just shines in a way he hasn’t before.
I just can’t get over George Miller’s unbelievable direction in this film, especially given he’s a 79-year-old man. The way he brings the color, twisted energy, and brutality of the wasteland to life here is incredible. There were several sequences in this film that left me totally in awe and bewildered at how any filmmaker could accomplish it. He’s truly one of a kind. Furiosa is a visceral triumph. An adrenalized, heart-pounding, epic trip through Miller's scorched wasteland that spans decades. The emotional journey is intimately personal and deeply moving. Action is ferocious, wild and unrelenting. Hold tight and brace for fury.
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